Climbing the Poet's Tree: Challenges #15 and 16

[alee_grrl]

Congratulations to ashestosnow for winning Challenge #13, the write an activist poem challenge. Thanks to all who entered, all the entries were wonderful. Congratulations to untonuggan for winning Challenge #14, our readers challenge.

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For Writers:
Challege #15: As we are now well into summer here in the Northern Hemisphere, this week's challenge will be to write a haiku on summer.

For Readers:
Challenge #16: Do you have a favorite poem about summer? Share it with us in the comments or on your own blog (with a link to that post in the comments here). Please provide a short explanation about why it's your favorite summer poem (can be that you like the particular wording or rhythm, explanation need not be long or complex).

This week's prizes:
Winner of each challenge gets zir choice of 30 dreamwidth points (the equivalent of one month of paid time), or a icon or poem (any format, though some make take more time than others, and on a topic of your choice) by alee_grrl.

The winner for each week’s writing challenge will be chosen by a rotating volunteer from the community. (This week’s volunteer judge is to be announced.) If you are interesting in being a judge, please sign up here. The winner for the reader’s challenge will be chosen randomly among all those who successfully complete the challenge. While anyone is welcome to accept and complete either or both challenges, the following people are not eligible for winning: this week’s judge (ineligible for Challenge #1; eligible for Challenge #2); last week’s winners (ineligible for whichever challenge they won last week); the winner of Challenge #1 (ineligible for winning Challenge #2); and the POETREE admins, jjhunter & alee_grrl (ineligible for both challenges).


Note that you do not have to be a member of POETREE, or even Dreamwidth for that matter, to participate. When you complete one of the challenges, please comment at this post with links to your poem or comments; if you complete both, please comment separately for each challenge. Deadline for challenge is Friday, June 22, 2012 at 11:59 EDT. Winners will be announced that Sunday.

Comments

Challenge #15 Response (not eligible to win)

[alee_grrl]

Note: Not eligible to win as author is a community admin.

Summer Heat

Re: Challenge #15 Response (not eligible to win)

[spiralsheep]

I like the marriage of "ooze" and "breeze", off-rhymes with opposing hot/cold meanings within the poem. :-)

Re: Challenge #15 Response (not eligible to win)

[alee_grrl]

Thanks!

[bookblather]

My favorite summer poem is absolutely The Summer Day, by Mary Oliver. It just so perfectly captures the lazy and yet intense feeling of summer, the long hot days in which you do everything and nothing at all. Also, it's just a lovely poem in general.

[alee_grrl]

What a fun poem. It really does capture the lazy and intense feeling of summer.

[spiralsheep]

I've read that before but it's a great poem so thank you for reminding me. I especially like the definite "This grasshopper" and the change of focus that hinges on it.

[lnhammer]

air like damp cotton,
newspaper in plastic bag --
thunderstorm season

[spiralsheep]

I've never lived anywhere with weather like that.

[alee_grrl]

Much of the American South (and Midwest) is like that. This haiku's reminds me of summers in Louisiana.

[spiralsheep]

Much of the *world* is like that, yes.

[alee_grrl]

Very true. :D I was just speaking of places I had lived that had similar weather. I've spent most of my time in the United States, and currently live in the Northeastern US. The only other country I've lived in was Jamaica, which did have hot and humid weather (though some areas were cooler like the place I lived).

[lnhammer]

In the Sonoran Desert, the difference between the default dry air and the moistness of the monsoon season is very noticeable.

---L.

[spiralsheep]

::nods understanding::

And haiku are an ideal form for highlighting indicative details of environment and culture.

[Not an entry; I'm neither eligible nor is this a haiku.]

[ashestosnow]

But the theme inspired me anyway.

summer, you are the season of length:
long days, long shadows, long-loved memories
torn away from us by winter's strength,
frozen: you stir them with evening's breeze,
warm, sweetly scented with crème de menthe,
a perfect companion to heart's ease.
watching shooting stars, i count the tenth,
forget old wishes by small degrees.


(And yes, if you're out well away from light pollution, you can indeed see ten shooting stars in a night. :) I highly recommend it if you can get away.)

Re: [Not an entry; I'm neither eligible nor is this a haiku.]

[alee_grrl]

Ooo, what a lovely little poem. Glad the theme inspired you.

Re: [Not an entry; I'm neither eligible nor is this a haiku.]

[ashestosnow]

Thank you. :)

Re: [Not an entry; I'm neither eligible nor is this a haiku.]

[spiralsheep]

I especially like "season of length". Thank you for sharing.

Re: [Not an entry; I'm neither eligible nor is this a haiku.]

[ashestosnow]

You're welcome. :) Thank you for your kind comment.

That was the line from which it all poured forth, really. I started thinking about what images summer brought to mind, and "length" was the first one. All things seem to stretch on for longer in the summertime.

#16

[spiralsheep]

Challenge #16

One of my favourite poems, one of my favourite love poems, and probably my favourite summer-themed poem is this rondel extracted from The Parliament of Fowls and known as Now Welcome Summer With Thy Sun(ne) Soft by Chaucer (link to my journal). I love the exhuberant music of the sound echoing the sense. I hope some com members enjoy it as much as I do but I also understand that some people find Chaucer's older English tricky to read so if you need any additional explanations then please ask me. :-)

Re: #16

[alee_grrl]

Thank you for reminding me how fun Chaucer can be to read. This really is a wonderful summer poem.

Re: #16

[spiralsheep]

You're welcome.

#15

[spiralsheep]

And, while I'm commenting, I might as well....

Challenge #15: Summer haiku

Loitering outside
stealing weather from the sky
and time from myself.

Re: #15

[alee_grrl]

I love the image of stealing weather from the sky. It's just fabulous.

Re: #15

[spiralsheep]

Easily brought to my mind because, here in England, we've been having a lot of "weather" recently... but not much of it's been "sunshine". ;-)